Actress Sakai Yoneko 1929

Yamanaka Kodō made this print of Actress Sakai Yoneko in Japan. Just imagine the artist, Kodō, with his chisels and gouges laboriously carving away at blocks of wood to make this image. It’s a total act of devotion. Kodō might have been thinking about earlier Japanese masters, too, but with his own modern spin. Look at how the green softly glows. It's like a field of colour behind the figure, so simple, yet so lush! I'm drawn to the actress's hands held up to her face, such a delicate gesture – almost like she's whispering a secret. When I look at her coy expression, I start to think about what painters and performers give to us. They’re always in this weird conversation across time, influencing each other, and teaching us how to see things in new ways. Kodō offers us his way of seeing, and we can respond in our own way.